10/18/2026
As we send our thoughts and prayers to the people of Bend, Oregon, where a 16-year-old opened fire at Silver Rail Elementary School yesterday, killing three children, ages 5, 8, and 11, and their teacher, now is the time to embrace Nelson Mandela's stirring call -- and take action: "We owe our children -- the most vulnerable citizens in any society -- a life free from violence and fear."
When it comes to gun violence, the United States is an extreme outlier among developed nations, with a gun homicide rate about 25 times higher than that of other high-income countries. In one Harvard comparison, 97 percent of the children ages 0 to 4 killed by guns across the world's wealthy nations were American. And the toll on the young has only grown: guns have now been the leading cause of death for American children and teenagers for five years running, surpassing car accidents -- in 2024 alone, they killed 2,214 of them.
So far this year, the Gun Violence Archive has recorded more than 365 mass shootings, in towns and cities, large and small, across the country.
These figures are appalling, and it doesn't have to be this way. Americans should be able to go to parades, grocery stores, movie theaters, concerts, and houses of worship without fear; they should be able to send their children to school with the confidence they will return home.
Dismayed by the lack of Congressional action following the murder of 20 children at their elementary school in Newtown, one mom, Shannon Watts, decided to take action and started an organization, Moms Demand Action. This group of moms fighting for sensible gun safety laws joined together with others working to end gun violence to form a non-profit organization, Everytown for Gun Safety.
This group has grown into a movement of nearly 10 million parents, gun violence survivors, gun owners, elected officials, and others committed to standing up to the gun lobby and fighting for common-sense gun safety laws. Most importantly, they are making a difference, especially at stopping the constant efforts by the gun lobby to roll back gun safety laws at the state level.
Now is the time to take action -- to help prevent the next mass shooting and the shootings that take place every day all across America. We owe it to our children and to all the victims of gun violence.
To learn how to get involved nationally or with a local chapter or to donate to support responsible gun safety laws, visit Everytown for Gun Safety at https://everytown.org/
While it's shocking to others around the world, school shootings have become such a normalized part of American childhood that there are now numerous books for young readers about life after the trauma of experiencing gun violence in school.
For a moving picture book about a young girl who survives a school shooting in which her friend is killed, we recommend "After: A Survivor's Story" for ages 5 and up at https://bookshop.org/a/8011/9780807530955 (picture book) and https://amzn.to/42bjwiW (Amazon)
For two powerful books for young readers about the experience of losing a sibling in a school shooting, we recommend "Mockingbird" for ages 9 and up (https://www.amightygirl.com/mockingbird) and "The Shape of Thunder" for ages 10 and up (https://www.amightygirl.com/the-shape-of-thunder)
The Newbery Honor book "Simon Sort of Says" tells the story of a boy grappling with moving forward after surviving a school schooling for ages 10 and up at https://bookshop.org/a/8011/9781368099585 (Bookshop) and https://amzn.to/4rNRTIn (Amazon)
"AfterMath" explores the experience of girl who becomes the new kid in a class full of school shooting survivors for ages 10 and up at https://www.amightygirl.com/aftermath
For a poignant and ultimately hopeful graphic novel about one survivor's journey toward healing following a school shooting, check out "Numb to This: Memoir of a Mass Shooting" for ages 15 and up at https://www.amightygirl.com/numb-to-this
For those who believe that change is impossible, you can read about how other nations -- which once also experienced mass shootings -- took action to change their laws and make safer societies for their children at https://nyti.ms/3uno4Si
